Arizona is the latest state to withdraw its membership from the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG), according to a letter exclusively obtained by Breitbart News.
NAAG is a purported “nonpartisan national forum” for state attorneys general, but conservative states are exiting the organization in waves over its increasingly left-leaning bias.
Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall first left the association in April 2021. Then, Texas, Missouri, and Montana followed suit last week. Those three state attorneys general cited NAAG’s “liberal bent” that has “fundamentally undermined NAAG’s role as a ‘nonpartisan national forum’ that ‘provides a community…to collaboratively address’ important issues.”
After Breitbart News reported on Texas, Missouri, and Montana’s split from the organization, Arizona became the fifth state to withdraw from NAAG.
“We are hereby notifying you that the Arizona Attorney General’s Office had decided to withdraw its membership from NAAG,” Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich said in a letter to NAAG President and Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller.
The Arizona Attorney General echoed Texas, Missouri, and Montana’s concerns about the organization’s increasingly liberal bias.
“The Association is supposed to function as a nonpartisan forum but the speakers and topics presented at recent NAAG meetings indicate otherwise,” Brnovich said. “We believe NAAG must take immediate steps to remedy this partisan permeation.”
Brnovich left open the possibility of rejoining NAAG if its leadership takes steps to address Arizona’s concerns.
“Our Office might consider a future membership at such a time as NAG employs new leadership and provides an action plan to address our concerns,” Brnovich concluded. “We look forward to discussing next steps to effectuating our withdrawal.”
However, it is unlikely Miller and the rest of NAAG’s leadership will do anything to combat the organization’s partisan slant.
The attorneys general for Texas, Missouri, and Montana reportedly met with NAAG’s senior leadership about their concerns, but nothing was done, and the three saw “no signs that anything will change in the future.”
Brnovich told Breitbart News that, along with NAAG’s left-leaning bias, the organization’s departure from its original intent of making sure as much restitution gets back to the consumers led to the state’s exit.
Brnovich said:
Arizona, like every other state, was part of NAAG for a long time, and NAAG as an organization, frankly, was designed to focus on issues that affected the state and the state AG’s office. And unfortunately, the direction NAAG has taken recently is a turn away from its original intent over the last several years, and our office was always focused on making sure we get as much restitution back to consumers.
The Arizona Attorney General added that NAAG focuses more on getting its piece of multimillion-dollar settlements than on getting consumers’ restitution.
“We don’t see NAAG putting an emphasis on restitution to consumers. In fact, to the contrary, NAAG is often worried about demanding requiring payouts in ways that were inconsistent with what I thought our goal should be,” he said. “And then when you combine that with what was happening with speakers and recent NAAG events, I think me and several of my colleagues just didn’t like the direction it was moving.”
Brnovich added that this partisan problem has been going on “for years” and “it’s definitely getting more partisan, and more left-leaning.”
Brnovich also attributed the organization’s increased bias to “the hyper-partisanship in our country.”